“Irrational Man,” this year’s movie from Woody Allen, is a hodgepodge of parts held together by an enigmatic protagonist and a finely nuanced performance by Joaquin Phoenix taking on that role. Longtime fans will recognize the formula.

Fuqua’s works possess auteur flourishes while notching much off the blockbuster checklist – In short, he’s an anomaly and a blessing during these dog days of summer, and Gyllenhaal clearly relished getting into tip-top shape for this underdog role.

After a traumatic breakup, a filmmaker listens to fellow passengers on a trip to Fire Island – and hears what “sound like a bunch of braying ninnies.” Why try so hard to sound “normal” is a question he only eventually comes around to asking.

Along with Gillian Anderson of “The X Files” and Stan Lee and other comics creators who travel the country from one comics and entertainment convention to the next, the eighth Boston Comic Con will have a taste of the hometown.

Sam Peckinpah’s magnum opus redefined the Western and the way violence was witnessed onscreen, as well as paving the way for the works of Coppola and Scorsese in the ’70s and later influencing Quentin Tarantino. See it in 70mm tonight.

If you haven’t seen any Edgar Wright films in theaters, this weekend is the time to do it. The Brattle hosts a “Wright On! Edgar Wright and His Influences” series from Friday through Sunday with his four modern classics.

This stunning exposé embeds a fearless filmmaker along the U.S.-Mexican border, where the crystal meth drug trade thrives and vigilante forces on both sides of the fence try to stem it – a real life “The Wild Bunch” meets “Traffic,” without a happy ending.